Andrew G. Kirchmayer, Captain, US Army, was killed in Action
on November 18, 1969, while serving as a battalion advisor to a South Vietnamese Army infantry division. He was
posthumously awarded the Silver Star and the Purple Heart following a firefight with Viet Cong forces near the
town of Cai Lay in Ding Tuong province. He had been awarded the Bronze Star for valor in another battle six weeks
earlier.

CPT Kirchmayer, 31, was an Artillery OCS graduate who had previously served five years at several Air Defense sites
in the U.S. and Germany before being pressed into duty as an infantry officer in Vietnam. Born in Czechoslovakia,
he immigrated to the United States from Austria along with his parents and older brother in 1949, following WWII.
He grew up in Ft. Atkinson, WI, where he eventually joined the Army National Guard and served as an enlisted man
before being accepted to OCS.

Andy Kirchmayer was truly a remarkable man: a gifted musician, writer, and poet, he possessed
a quick wit and great self-confidence. His experience as an enlisted man endeared him to his troops. Following
his death, a college scholarship was set up in his name for graduates of Ft. Atkinson High School who had "some
potential genius, with a spark of talent and leadership and love for music."

It was Andy's compassion for the Vietnamese people that indirectly led to his death in a
hot LZ, overrun by overwhelming Viet Cong forces. Two days previously, Andy had turned down a transfer to Saigon.
As reported in his home town paper "He told his superior officers that he could not go because he had a job
to do where he was, working with his 'little people', whom he admired so much, and over whom he towered because
of his size."

Andy left behind a wife and two children, his parents, brother, and an extended family including
all who loved and admired him.

"Greater love hath no man that this, that a man lay down his life for his friends"
~ John 15:13 ~

This Memorial to Andy Kirchmayer was put on this site as a token of my esteem and friendship
for my old classmate, Colin Sandell, who knew Andy well. His words...

"Andy was my boss the last year of my enlistment,
his first job after OCS. We became good friends and remained so until his death. Over the years I stayed in contact
with his parents until they died. He was one of the most gifted men I have known. Like so many others, what a terrible
waste. Thanks again for putting him on your web site."

9,087,000 military personnel served on active duty during the Vietnam Era (Aug 5, 1964 -
May 7, 1975) and 2,594,000 served in the country of Vietnam and where more than 58,202 never returned home.
Andy was one of them.See the Vietnam Statistics Page for more details